Biographical Sketch:
William Bowker Preston, a native of Virginia, was born in 1830. In 1852, he went to California and eventually settled in
Yolo County as a farmer. His neighbors were the Thatchers, a Mormon family. By 1857 Preston had fallen in love with
Harriet Thatcher, and in February of that year he was baptized into the LDS Church. Preston was soon called by George Q.
Cannon to serve in the Pacific Coast mission. The earliest letters in the collection are to his sweetheart Harriet while on
this mission. Preston asked for Harriet’s hand in marriage, but her father, Hezekiah Thatcher, refuses to allow the union.
In the fall of 1857 California Mormons were called back to Utah to assist in defending the territory against the U.S. Army.
Preston, the Thatchers, and other Mormon families arrived in Salt Lake City in January 1858. Preston and Harriet were
married in February 1858 and first settled in Payson, Utah, where Preston built an adobe house. However, in August 1859
the Prestons and the Thatchers moved to Cache Valley and in November Preston was named Bishop of Logan.
In April 1865 Preston was called to serve a mission in Europe. Upon arrival in Liverpool, England, Preston was assigned to Newcastle and Durham. In January 1866 he was called to serve in the Liverpool office, which at that time was the headquarters of the European Mission. Preston’s two mission diaries, and the complementary letters to Harriet, give rich, full details of his daily activities in the field of labor and in the mission office-i.e., office traffic (composition of office employees, names and assignments of missionaries, visits of Church authorities from the U.S. etc), full detail on emigration (for which he had specific responsibility), and his many travels to visit branches of the Church in England, Wales, and Scotland. In August 1867 Preston visited the Paris Exposition. He was released from his mission in the summer of 1868 and sailed from Liverpool in charge of 600 emigrating saints.
Upon his return home, Preston resumed his duties as bishop in Logan and was elected to the territorial legislative assembly (1872-1882) where he had also served in the 1860's. He also took a leading part in the construction of the Utah and Northern Railroad. In 1871 he was appointed presiding bishop of Cache Valley (a regional bishop with jurisdiction over twenty wards). In 1877, he was called to the Cache Valley Stake Presidency, serving as counselor to his brother-in-law, Moses Thatcher. In 1879, Preston was called as Cache Valley Stake President, and in 1883 vacated that office to assume the responsibilities of the Presiding Bishop of the Church. He was released in December 1907 due to poor health and died in August 1908.
Provenance:
Special Collections purchased the William B. Preston Papers, from Grandin Book (Provo, Utah) in November 1999.
More items were purchased in January, 2001, from Ken Sanders Rare Books in Salt Lake City and in January, 2002 from Grandin
Book. One item, a letter from William Preston, Jr. to William Preston, Sr. was donated by John Sillito in September 2002.
Scope and Content:
This collection consists mostly of correspondence from William B. Preston to his wife Harriet during the period
1857-1900. There are a few letters from Harriet to William, and a couple from William to their children, Allie and Willie.
Two letters from William Preston, Jr. in 1889 to his parents and sister describe his LDS mission in Europe. There is also
a letter from R. L. Preston, William’s nephew, detailing his research into the Preston family genealogy, and a letter from
Joseph F. Smith consoling the Prestons after the death of two of their children. Additionally, several letters from
William’s daughter, Mary, who served as a nurse in Europe during World War I, are also included. The letters are arranged
chronologically and separated into folders. The locations listed on the inventory after the name of the writer indicate
where the letters were sent from.
In addition to correspondence, this collection contains several other items: two mission diaries kept by William while he served in Liverpool, England (1867-1868), a certificate proclaiming William Mayor of Logan, a certificate from when William Preston became a member of the Utah House of Representatives, and a Resolution by the Brigham Young College in Logan in memory of William Preston following his death in 1908. The mayoral certificate and Resolution are in containers separate from the boxes.
Seven folders in box two contain miscellaneous papers from the Bullion, Beck, and Champion Mining Company of Salt Lake City, where William Preston served as treasurer. The papers do not directly mention William, however.
Researchers interested in more Moses Thatcher, Sr. and William P. Preston material should see the Moses Thatcher, Sr. Papers and the B.G. Olesen Western Manuscript Collection.
Inventory:
Box 1.
Folder 1. Correspondence 1857-1859
Preston, William B., Bedford Ranch, to fiancee, Harriet A. Thatcher, March 1857. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Pleasant Valley, to fiancee, Harriet A. Thatcher, 13 July 1857. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Bedford Ranch, to fiancee, Harriet A. Thatcher, 26 July 1857. 1 piece.
Thatcher, Harriet A., Great Salt Lake Valley, to fiancee, William B. Preston, 5 August 1857. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Bedford Ranch, to fiancee, Harriet A. Thatcher, 9 August 1857. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Buckeye, Upper California, to Aaron Thatcher, 11 August 1857. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Bedford Ranch, to fiancee, Harriet A. Thatcher, 23 August 1857. Preston is laboring under the direction of George Q. Cannon.1 piece.
Preston, William B., San Bernardino, to Wife, Harriet, 3 March 1859. Preston was in California purchasing clothing and merchandise for Thatcher’s store in Utah. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Fillmore City, to Wife, Harriet, 12 April 1859. Preston is returning to SLC from California. 1 piece.
Folder 2. Correspondence 1860-1862
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 1 Sept 1860. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 9 Dec 1860[?]. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B. to Wife, Harriet, 6 Jan 1862, Great Salt Lake City at Representative Hall. Preston was attending General Conference. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 9 April 1862. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 15 Dec 1862. Preston is in SLC attending the Legislative Assembly. He reports on a battle between the Army of the Potomac and Stonewall Jackson. 1 piece.
Folder 3. Correspondence 1863
Invitation for “Hon. Wm. Preston and Ladies” to attend a cotillion party. 12 January 1863. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 13 January 1863. Preston is in SLC attending the Legislative Assembly. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., No. of Ft Bridger, to Wife, Harriet, 4 May 1863. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Wind River, to Wife, Harriet, 13 June 1863. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Florence, to Wife, Harriet, 18 June 1863. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Florence, to Wife, Harriet, 2 July 1863. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Woodriver Center, to Wife, Harriet, 30-31 July 1863. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 15 December 1863. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 21 December 1863. Preston is in SLC attending the Legislative Assembly. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 22 Dec 1863. Preston is in SLC attending the Legislative Assembly. Letter was delivered by John Cowley. 1 piece, 1 envelope.
Folder 4. Correspondence 1864
Preston, Harriet A., Logan, to Husband, William, 19 Jan 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 24 April 1864. Preston indicates that he is writing this letter “1 door west of Theater at George W. Thatcher’s” He has joined others to collect emigrants at the Missouri River. 1 piece.
Preston, William B.,Muddy River, 12 miles from Ham’s Fork, [Wyoming], to Wife, Harriet, 3 May 1864. Note at end of letter, dated Hams Fork, [Wyoming], 4 May 1864, Preston indicates that his party met emigrant wagons en route to Bannock [Wyoming?]. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Junction of North and South Platte, to Wife, Harriet, 8 June 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Wyoming, to Wife, Harriet, 1 July 1864. 3 pieces. Photocopy (no original).
Preston, William B., Wyoming, to Wife, Harriet, 8 July 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Kerney City (2 miles above Ft. Kerney) to Wife, Harriet, 25 July 1864. 1 piece, 1 envelope.
Preston, William B., Wyoming, to Wife, Harriet, 31 July 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 12 Dec. 1864. Preston is in SLC attending the Legislative Assembly. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great S. L. City, to Wife, Harriet, 21 Dec 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, Harriet A., Logan, to Husband, William, 25 Dec 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great S. L. City, to Wife, Harriet, 27 Dec 1864. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Great S. L. City, to Wife, Harriet, 30 Dec. 1864. 1 piece. Photocopy (no original).
Folder 5. Correspondence 1865
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 4 Jan1865. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Great Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 7 Jan 1865. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Fort Bridger, to Wife, Harriet, 30 May 1865. 2 pieces. Photocopy (no original).
Preston, William B., Omahaw, to Wife, Harriet, 4 July 1865. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Omahaw, to Wife, Harriet, 7 July 1865. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., New York City, to Wife, Harriet, 15 July 1865. Preston arrived in NYC the previous day and was to sail for Liverpool the date of this letter, 15 July 1865. However, he decides to visit his parents in VA before his departure. 1 piece, 1 envelope.
Preston, William B., New York, to Wife, Harriet, 8 Aug 1865. Preston is a missionary on his way to England. He visits his parents, relatives, and friends in Virginia. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., New York City, to Wife, Harriet, 9 Aug 1865. Preston is in NYC waiting passage to England. 2 pieces, 1 envelope.
Preston, William B., Logan, UT, Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 27 Aug 1865. Letter delivered by T.E. Ricks. 2 pieces, 1 envelope.
Preston, William B.15 Clyde St., Sunderland, to Wife, Harriet, 9 and 10 Oct 1865. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B.15 Clyde St., Sunderland, to Wife, Harriet, 26 Oct 1865. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B. 15 Clyde St., Sunderland, to Wife, Harriet, 27 Nov 1865. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B. 15 Clyde St., Sunderland, to Wife, Harriet, 27 Dec 1865. 4 pieces.
Folder 6. Correspondence 1866
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 17 Jan 1866. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 15 Feb 1866. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 11 Mar 1866. 5 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 22 Apr 1866. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 3 June 1866. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 10 July 1866. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 14 July 1866. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 24 July 1866.1 piece. [fragment]
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 5 Aug 1866. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 21 Aug 1866. 3 pieces.
Thatcher, Moses, Cheltenham, to Sister, Harriet, 22 Aug 1866. 3 pieces incomplete.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 9 Sept 1866. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 14 Sept 1866. 5 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 5 Oct 1866. Also Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 6 Oct 1866. (This is apparently a postscript to the above letter.) 5 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 26 Oct 1866. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 16 Nov 1866. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 6 Dec 1866. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 25 Dec 1866. 4 pieces.
Folder 7. Correspondence 1867
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 18 Jan 1867. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 11 Feb 1867. Plus quarter page note to his daughter, Allie, Feb 12. 5 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 9 March 1867. 4 pieces.
Thatcher, Moses to his Sister, Harriet Thatcher Preston, 12 March 1867, Cheltenham, England. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 29 March 1867. 5 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 16 Apr 1867. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 6 May 1867. 4 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 1 June. 1867. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 8 June 1867. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 29 June 1867. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Nottingham, to Wife, Harriet, 13 July 1867. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 23 July 1867. 3 pieces.
Preston, Harriet A., Logan, to Husband, William, 27 July 1867. [no signature] 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 13 Aug 1867. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Paris, to Wife, Harriet, 1 Sep 1867. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 14 Sep 1867. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 4 Oct 1867. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 14 Oct 1867. 5 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 13 Nov 1867. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Birmingham, to Wife, Harriet, 27 Dec 1867. 3 pieces.
Folder 8. Correspondence 1868
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 17 Jan 1868. [missing page 9] 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 7 Feb 1868. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Jersey Island, British Channel, to Wife, Harriet, 11 Mar 1868. [no signature] 1 piece, 1 envelope.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 4 Apr 1868. 1 piece.
Preston, Harriet A., to Husband, William, 17 May 1868. 2 pieces.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 10 June 1868. 1 piece.
Preston, Harriet A. to Husband, William, 18 Jun 1868, Logan.1 piece.
Preston, William B., Liverpool, to Wife, Harriet, 4 July 1868. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., New York City, to Wife, Harriet, 28 July 1868. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Benton, to Wife, Harriet, 11 Aug 1868. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Head of Echo, to Wife, Harriet, 29 Oct. 1868. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Echo Canyon, to Wife, Harriet, 22 Nov 1868. Preston is stationed at Echo Canyon, working as a sub-contractor under Brigham Young and George Thatcher constructing Union Pacific RR. 1 piece.
Folder 9. Correspondence 1870-1887
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 5 Feb 1870. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 8 Jan 1872. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 20 Jan 1872.1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 27 Jan 1872. 3 pieces.
Preston, Harriet A., Chicago, to daughter and son, Allie and Willie, 10 Dec. 1872 1 piece.
Preston, William B.,Washington, D.C., to his daughter and son, Allie and Willie, 18 Dec 1872. 2 pieces.
Preston, Harriet A., Bedford, VA, to Allie and Willie, 19 Dec. 1872. Photocopy, no original.
Preston, William B., Shanghai, Berkeley Co, VA., to his daughter and son, Allie and Willie, 11 Mar 1873. 1 piece.
Preston-Farmer, Martha Elizabeth (Lizzie) to brother, William B. Preston informing him of the death of their mother, Martha Mitchell Claytor-Preston, 5 June 1875. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 19 Jan 1876. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 27 Jan 1876. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 8 Feb 1876. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 3 Oct 1877. 1 piece.
Preston, May, “at aunt Lizzie’s” in Virginia to mother, Harriet A. Preston, 7 May 1887. 4 pieces.
Folder 10. Correspondence 1888-1900
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 18 Dec 1888. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Jr. (Willie), Berlin, to parents, William and Harriet, 25 May 1889. Details about his work as a missionary in Europe.
Preston, William B. Jr. (Willie), in Berlin, to sister, May Preston, 7 Aug. 1889. 5 pieces. 1 incomplete envelope.
Preston, R. L., Central University, Richmond, KY, to uncle, William B. Preston. 30 Dec. 1889. Describes genealogical research on Preston family in Virginia.10 pieces. 1 envelope.
Preston, Harriet A., Great Salt Lake City, to daughter, May, 14 April 1892. Mentions scaffolding being taken down from the Salt Lake City Temple. 3 pieces.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 4 Dec 1891. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his daughter, May, 10 June 1893. 1 piece, 1 envelope.
Preston, May, Utah Building at Jackson Park, to mother, Harriet, 6 Oct. 1893. 3 pieces. 1 envelope.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his daughter, Alley, 19 October 1893. 1 piece.
Preston, William B. Jr., Logan, to William B. Preston, Sr., 24 Feb. 1894. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to Wife, Harriet, 17 Oct. 1894. 2 pieces. Photocopy, no original.
Preston, Harriet A., Logan, to Husband, William, 21 Apr 1895. 1 piece.
Preston, William B., Salt Lake City, to his Wife, Harriet, 18 June 1900. 1 piece.
Smith, Joseph F., Salt Lake City, to William and Harriet Preston, Jan 12, 1908. Consoles the Prestons on the death of their son, Willie (William Preston, Jr.) and daughter, Allie (Alena). 1 piece and 1 envelope.
Preston, Mary, Augers, France, to mother, Harriet, 15 Jan. 1918. Mary worked as a nurse during World War I. 1 piece and 1 envelope.
Preston, Harriet, to daughter, Mary. Dec. 1918. Christmas card. 1 piece.
Preston, Mary, Augers, France, to mother, Harriet, Feb. 2 1919. 1 piece and 1 envelope.
Preston, Mary, Augers, France, to mother, Harriet, 1 Mar. 1919. 1 piece and 1 envelope.
Folder 11.
Misc. letter fragments [3 letter fragments with no dates]
Folder 12.
Certificate of Secretary of Utah Territory that William B. Preston has been duly elected to House of Representatives of Utah Territory for Cache and Rich Counties, 20 December 1871.
Box 2.
A. Preston, William B. Mission Diaries, 1865-1868, 2 volumes.
Book 1 Vol. 1 (6 April 1865-24 August 1867)
Book 2 Vol. 2 (24 August 1867-28 July 1868)
B. Miscellaneous Papers from Bullion, Beck, and Champion Mining Co.
Folder 1. Burch, Alonzo, correspondence.
Folder 2. Dayton, R. P. corresp.
Folder 3. Globe, and Philadelphia Smelting and Refining Companies, correp.
Folder 4. Peters, J. correp.
Folder 5. Smith, C.B., corresp.
Folder 6. Thatcher, Moses, corresp.
Folder 7. Miscellaneous corresp.
Additional Items.
Item 1: Proclamation Naming William B. Preston Mayor of Logan, 2 Mar. 1874. (Enclosed in green slip case.)
Item 2: Resolution in Memory of William B. Preston from Brigham Young College. Signed by Joseph F. Smith and Hershell Bullen, Jr.
No date given. (Enclosed in oversized folder.)